Hemostat organizer

ABSTRACT

An organizer is provided for holding surgical forceps in a ready position. Each surgical forceps includes a pair of shanks with distal tips, proximal ring handles, and a ratchet mechanism adjacent the ring handles. The organizer has a base, and a wedge-shaped core projecting upwards along a vertical axis from the base. The core has a profile adapted to fit within a respective opening of each respective forceps bounded by the shanks and the ratchet mechanism when the ratchet mechanisms are engaged. A plurality of wings project radially from the core to define a plurality of substantially U-shaped channels between adjacent wings. The channels are configured to nest the shanks of the forceps so that the respective forceps are locked in the grooves by their respective ratchet mechanisms.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH

Not Applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates in general to a tree or tower for holdinga plurality of surgical hemostats, and, more specifically, to anorganizer for arranging hemostat instruments in a holder from which eachhemostat can be easily grasped and removed using the same grip fromwhich the hemostat is to be used.

Many types of surgeries (e.g., cardiovascular surgery) may utilizelocking hemostat-type instruments for clamping conduits such asarteries, veins, or tubing of an extracorporeal circulation system. Asused herein, “hemostat” means a scissors-like instrument or forcepswhich can be locked in a closed position or partially closed position tograsp tissue and/or act as a clamp, including for example Kelly forceps,Halsted forceps, Hartman forceps, Crile forceps, Rochester-Pean forceps,Mosquito forceps, sponge forceps, and tube occluding clamps. Importantconsiderations for any sort of surgical interventions include minimizingthe surgery time, managing the use of space around the surgical area andwithin the surgical setting, maintaining sterility, and making surgicalinstruments easily accessible to user without the awaiting instrumentsbeing intrusive.

A hemostat may include a pair of shanks joined where they cross at anintermediate portion along their length by a box lock joint. The distaltips of the shanks provide straight or curved jaws with contactingsurfaces that may be serrated or smooth. Ring handles at the proximalends of the shanks receive a thumb and finger of the user for openingand closing the jaws. A ratchet mechanism is provided between the ringhandles to provide a range of locking positions providing a range ofpotential clamping pressures when the jaws are closed over a particularstructure.

For use during a particular surgical event, a supply of hemostats may beset up in a tray, rack, or other retainer to be picked up by a user(e.g., surgeon) as needed. Some trays or racks may have corrugations orslots for holding each forceps vertically so that they are not one atopanother, but this requires extra manipulations to pick up and theninsert the user's thumb and finger into the ring handles. Furthermore,each separate forceps may be loosely held and subject to being knockedover. Another type of organizer shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,512,466, issuedto Delang, uses upright posts of an organizer to receive the ringhandles of a plurality of hemostats which are stored horizontally. Theposts are spaced apart such that each of the stored hemostats is in anopened (e.g., unratcheted) position. Thus, each individual hemostat mustfirst be removed from the organizer before it can be grasped in themanner for uses as a hemostat. Furthermore, Delang contemplates that allthe stored hemostats have a matching size and shape so that they alignwith the spacing of the posts and so that they harmoniously lie on topof one another in a stack.

Because of the disadvantages of known organizers, many surgeons simplyplace the hemostats on a flat surface of nearby equipment or on trays.When lying flat on such a surface, the retrieval and grasping of thehemostat requires time and attention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides an organizer for hemostats/forceps that accepts arange of sizes and shapes, presents successive instruments in an mannerfor easy grasping via the ring handles by the thumb and finger in anergonomic orientation which matches the orientation with which the userapplies the hemostat/forceps to the patient, and keeps the individualinstruments locked in place until deliberately removed from theorganizer.

In one aspect of the invention, an organizer is provided for a pluralityof surgical forceps, wherein the surgical forceps each includes a pairof shanks with distal tips, proximal ring handles, and a ratchetmechanism adjacent the ring handles. The organizer has a base, and awedge-shaped core projecting upwards along a vertical axis from thebase. The core has a profile adapted to fit within a respective openingof each respective forceps bounded by the shanks and the ratchetmechanism when the ratchet mechanisms are engaged. A plurality of wingsproject radially from the core to define a plurality of substantiallyU-shaped channels between adjacent wings. The channels are configured tonest the shanks of the forceps so that the respective forceps are lockedin the grooves by their respective ratchet mechanisms.

The organizer is small and unobtrusive, and it allows the hemostats tobe aligned in a desired direction and at a height that facilitates aneasy motion for grasping and moving a hemostat. Thus, a hand and armmotion of the user is such that a single, fluid movement can beperformed in which the user grasps, opens, and removes the hemostat “onthe way” toward the intended usage location.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a hemostat.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a prior art organizer for sterilizingand storing hemostatic instruments.

FIG. 3 is a side perspective view of an organizer according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a side perspective view of the organizer of FIG. 3 withhemostats loaded into respective channels on the organizer.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are a perspective view and a vertical cross-sectional viewof an organizer with a hemostat loaded in a topmost channel.

FIG. 7 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of an organizer andhemostat.

FIG. 8 is a rear perspective view of an organizer with hemostats loadedin lower and middle channels.

FIG. 9 is a vertical cross section of the organizer of FIG. 3.

FIG. 10 is a side view of the organizer of FIG. 3 showing progressivechanges in a slant of the channels for receiving the hemostats.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 shows a common type of hemostat 10 with a shank 11 and a shank 12attached via a box lock 13. Shank 11 has a distal tip 14 and a ringhandle 16. Shank 12 has a distal tip 15 and a ring handle 17. Ringhandles 16 and 17 include ratchet parts 18 and 19, respectively, of aratchet mechanism having a plurality of teeth which interact to retaintips 14 and 15 at any one of a plurality of ratchet positions withsufficient force to enable the creation of a desirable clampingpressure. A greater force (which can be easily applied manually by theuser) can be used to move the ratchet mechanism is either direction orto open the hemostat completely.

FIG. 2 shows a prior art organizer 20 in which a pair of posts 21 and 22extend upward from a cardboard base 23. Finger rings of hemostats areplaced over posts 21 and 22. A divider 24 and a separator 25 keep thehemostats in an opened condition. Thus, the hemostats must first belifted out from the organizer before they can be held in an operativegrip (e.g., with thumb and finger through the ring handles).Furthermore, the hemostats are loosely held in place and could bedislodged in the organizer is knocked over.

FIG. 3 shows an organizer 30 configured to overcome the drawbacks ofconventional organizers. Organizer 30 is preferably comprised of aunitary molded body onto which individual hemostats can be clipped usingtheir ratchet mechanisms.

In some preferred embodiments, organizer 30 has a base 31, awedge-shaped core 32, and a plurality of wings 33, 34, and 35. Core 32projects upwards along a vertical axis from base 31. The wedge shape ofcore 32 provides a triangular profile adapted to fit within a respectiveopening (e.g., a generally triangular opening) of each respectiveforceps bounded by the shanks and the ratchet mechanism when the ratchetmechanisms are engaged. Wings 33-35 project radially from core 32 anddefine a plurality of substantially U-shaped channels 36, 37, and 38between adjacent wings (and/or base 31 and lowest wing 33). Channels36-38 are configured to nest the shanks of the forceps so that therespective forceps are locked in channels 36-38 by their respectiveratchet mechanisms.

Each wing has a proximal end and a distal end (e.g., a proximal end 33Aand a distal end 33B of wing 33). The proximal ends of the wings atleast partly define portions of the respective channels for receivingrespective ratchet mechanisms of the hemostats. Lateral sides of thewings on opposite sides of core 32 define portions of the respectivechannels that receive the shanks of the hemostats.

FIG. 4 shows organizer 30 loaded with hemostats 40, 41, and 42, inrespective channels 36, 37, and 38. In order to load a hemostat, it isplaced into an open state which enlarges the opening between the shanks.Starting with lowest channel, hemostats may be loaded one-by-one. Forexample, hemostat 42 is guided toward channel 36 and then adjustedtoward a closed and locked state with the ratchet mechanism engaged tolock hemostat 42 into the position shown in FIG. 4. After hemostats 41and 40 are loaded in a similar manner, organizer 30 can be placed at aconvenient location for access by a user during a surgical procedure.Organizer 30 can be oriented in a direction the best enables the user toreach for and remove the topmost hemostat. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6,hemostat 40 can be removed by grasping ring handles 43 and 44, openinghemostat 40 by separating ring handles 43 and 44 to release ratchetmechanism 45 within channel 38, and lifting away from organizer 30 withthe hemostat already pointing in the desired direction for use.

FIG. 7 shows a horizontal cross section revealing the placement ofhemostat 40 on organizer 30 such that core 32 (partially bounded bychannel 38) is received in a triangular opening of hemostat 40 boundedby ratchet mechanism 45 and shanks 46 and 47. Ratchet mechanism 45 andshanks 46 and 47 may rest atop an upper surface of wing 34. As shown inFIG. 8, hemostats 41 and 42 are similarly placed when they are loaded onorganizer 30. Although hemostats 40-42 are shown as being identicalinstruments, hemostats of different sizes and shapes can be loaded ontoorganizer 30. The particular dimensions of organizer 30 may be selectedto accommodate any particular desired set of types and sizes ofhemostats that may be desired (e.g., a range of instruments used forparticular surgical procedures). In particular, the triangular profileof core 32, the distance between adjacent wings (e.g., the verticalheight of the channels), and the lateral extension of the wings (whichdefines the depths of the channels) can be adjusted to handle a range ofsizes and shapes of hemostats. Furthermore, hemostats of different typescan be loaded in a sequence from top to bottom of the organizeraccording to their order of use during a particular surgical procedure,allowing the user to pluck each desired instrument from the top of thestack at the time it is needed.

FIG. 9 shows a vertical cross section of organizer 30. A separation ofbase 31 and wing 33 provides channel 36 with a vertical height distanceD1. A lateral extension of wing 33 and base 31 from core 32 provideschannel 36 with a depth D2. The resulting channel size is configured toaccommodate the shanks and ratchet mechanisms of selected hemostats orother forceps.

In one preferred embodiment, the hemostats/forceps may be tilted forward(e.g., by providing the channels with a downward slant from the handles)so that the distal tips are generally lower than the proximal ringhandles. This locates the distal tips close together is a compactgrouping that is easier to manage and to keep out of the way. It alsoprovides additional space between the ring handles of adjacent hemostatsfor easier manipulation to open and remove the topmost instrument. Insome embodiments, the forward tilt is obtained by arranging the wingssuch that each proximal end of a respective wing has a vertical heightwhich is greater than a vertical height of the distal end of therespective wing.

As shown in FIG. 10, channel 36 is generally horizontal. A bottom sideof lowermost wing 33 is also generally horizontal so that the sides ofchannel 36 are parallel. Wing 33 has a proximal end height 50 which isgreater than a distal end height 51, resulting in channel 37 having alower surface 54 having a downward slant from the proximal end to thedistal end. Wing 34 has a surface 53 which defines a top surface ofchannel 37 which is parallel with surface 54. Consequently, channel 37has an inclination angle 52. The slope of channel 37 has an inclinationangle which is preferably in a range from about 3° to about 10°, andwhich is most preferably about 50.

In some embodiments, the slanted channels have respective inclinationangles that are progressively greater from a lowest slanted channel to ahighest slanted channel. The progression may utilize an angle incrementwhich may be in a range from about 3° to about 10°, and most preferablyabout 5°. In FIG. 10, wing 34 has a proximal end height 55 which isgreater than a distal end height 56, resulting in channel 38 having alower surface 57 having an even larger downward slant from its proximalend to its distal end than the slope of channel 37. Wing 35 has asurface 58 which defines a top surface of channel 38 which is parallelwith surface 57. Channel 38 has an inclination angle 60 which is greaterthan inclination angle 52. For example, inclination angle 60 may betwice as large as inclination angle 52 (e.g., angle 52 being about 5°and angle 60 being about 10°). For a taller tower with a third channel,the inclination angle for the third channel may increase according to afixed incremental angle (e.g. an increment of 5° resulting in aninclination of about 15°) or by an increment following a differentprogression.

For a taller tower with an even greater number of hemostat channels, itmay be desirable to progressively increase the inclination angles at aslower rate (e.g., using a smaller incremental angle).

What is claimed is:
 1. An organizer for a plurality of surgical forceps,wherein the surgical forceps each includes a pair of shanks with distaltips, proximal ring handles, and a ratchet mechanism adjacent the ringhandles, the organizer comprising: a base; a wedge-shaped coreprojecting upwards along a vertical axis from the base and having aprofile adapted to fit within a respective opening of each respectiveforceps bounded by the shanks and the ratchet mechanism when the ratchetmechanisms are engaged; and a plurality of wings projecting radiallyfrom the core and defining a plurality of substantially U-shapedchannels between adjacent wings, wherein the channels are configured tonest the shanks of the forceps so that the respective forceps are lockedin the channels by their respective ratchet mechanisms.
 2. The organizerof claim 1 wherein each wing has a proximal end and a distal end,wherein the proximal ends of the wings at least partly define portionsof the channels for receiving respective ratchet mechanisms, and whereineach proximal end of a respective wing has a vertical height which isgreater than a vertical height of the distal end of the respective wing.3. The organizer of claim 1 wherein at least some of the channels areslanted downward from a respective proximal end to a respective distalend so that the ring handles of corresponding forceps are higher thanthe corresponding distal tips.
 4. The organizer of claim 3 wherein theslanted channels have respective inclination angles that areprogressively greater from a lowest slanted channel to a highest slantedchannel.
 5. The organizer of claim 4 wherein the inclination anglesbetween adjacent slanted channels progressively increase according to anincrement in a range of 3° to 10°.
 6. The organizer of claim 5 whereinthe increment is about 5°.
 7. The organizer of claim 1 wherein thesurgical forceps are comprised of hemostat instruments.
 8. The organizerof claim 1 wherein the base, core, and wings are formed by a unitarybody comprised of molded thermoplastic.